Full-time employees of U.S. local health departments, 1992-1993.

This article describes a study to assess the most recent data on full-time U.S. local health department (LHD) staff positions. The authors used data from the National Association of County and City Health Officials' 1992-1993 national survey of LHDs. The study concludes that nurses, environmental specialists, sanitarians, and administrators constitute the core of the public health workforce in smaller and mid-sized LHDs. Numerous vacancies in these core occupations signal a weakness in the front lines of public health and vulnerability in its ability to respond to urgent health threats. To address these problems, a renewed commitment to recruiting, retraining, and retaining the local public health worker is urgently needed.